Popular Car Company Cancellation Policies
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Many cancellation policies vary depending on the type of reservation you’ve made. Below are some of the most popular car rental brands available and their different policies regarding rental booking cancellations as of March 12th, 2020 at 3:48 PM.
If you have booked through a popular travel agency or online booking agent please be sure to make any reservation changes through them, their individual reservation cancellation processes and policies will apply.
When booking, always make sure to read the fine print, also see individual terms and conditions for the various rental companies and their affiliates. Also, keep in mind: The actual fees may differ if you’re renting in another country. These are only based on rentals made in the U.S.
Update April 7 2:57 PM: Silvercar by Audi recently made a lot of changes to their existing policies in light of the situation at hand. These changes should help customers save money and add convenience when booking an auto rental.
These changes will be in place until May 31st, 2020. Silvercar also does not charge customers for any cancellation or change fees for rentals. If you have specific question in regards to your rental, email them at support@silvercar.com.
Update March 24 2:15 PM: Fox Rent a Car is allowing patrons to cancel all existing Pay Now reservations for account credit that have rental pickup dates before April 30th, 2020 and will also be waiving any cancellation fees for pickups prior to that date when choosing the Pay Now option. They’ve also done always with local rates and are lowering the cost of long term rentals.
UPDATE March 20 8:32 AM: Easirent UK/USA has provided further information about their continued operations, including reduced hours, limited contact and increased cleaning procedures for their rental cars.
Routes Car Rental announced that March 17th through April 2nd they will be waiving cancellation fees. This must be done prior to picking up your vehicle however, if you need to cancel send emails to customercare@routes.ca.
UPDATE March 13th 11:02 AM: Enterprise has become one of the first car rental companies to announce a change in their cancellation policy due to the Coronavirus.
“To provide you with flexibility for these changes, we have extended our existing no-fee cancellation policy to include customers with pre-paid rentals booked directly through us.”
If you are booking an Enterprise car through a third party you will still need to check with them and adhere to their cancellation policies.
UPDATE: March 13th 6:14 PM
Avis and Budget made the following change to their reservation change policy.
“If you have an existing reservation, we look forward to seeing you and want to reassure you that we are doing everything we can to promote a safe and secure rental experience. If you need to change a reservation, you can do so without incurring any change fees.”
Advantage Rent a Car Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: One Day Rental, Fees and Taxes
When renting from this company you are presented with two options, pay now or pay later.
The pros of paying now is that you will save money on the total cost of your reservation per day, however, if for some reason you need to cancel that reservation you will be subject to a cancellation fee of $50. If you do not cancel more than 24 hours in advance you will be subject to a minimum of one day’s rental charge, the associated taxes and fees.
So, is it worth it?
If your plans are set in stone or you have a long-term rental, where you’d save more money, then this could be a good option for you.
Alternatively, if you pay later you will not be required to include your card information and the time of checkout and can cancel the reservation without being subject to any charges or fees.
Need to change your reservation? Visit https://www.advantage.com/my-reservations/ or call 800-777-5500 for assistance.
Alamo Rent a Car Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: $100 No Show Fee
For pay later reservations canceled more than 24 hours before the pick up time are free
Again, with pay now there is more risk involved. If you are able to cancel 24 hour before the time of pickup you will only be subjected to a $50 cancellation fee, if you cannot cancel before that or simply do not pick up the vehicle you could be subject to a $100 no-show fee. In order to avoid additional costs, make sure you cancel CDW and other add-on options, including insurance.
For more information on the Alamo’s cancellation policy see their Modify or Cancel a Car Rental Reservation page.
Avis Car Rental Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: $150 Processing Fee
Their cancellation policy is based on whether you decide to prepay for the vehicle or not. If you are not prepaying for the vehicle you will not be charged for a no-show or rental cancellation. However, as a courtesy the rental car company does appreciate patrons visiting their online portal to make the cancellation so that they know which cars in their fleet are available.
If you did prepay and want to make changes to your reservation you need to fill out a cancel and request form online to get a refund 24 hours before the time of your rental pickup. Even in doing this you will still be charged a $50 processing fee. If you wait until less than 24 hours before the pickup you can get a refund minus a $150 processing fee. If you don’t cancel the reservation and do not show up to pick up the car you will not be able to get any type of refund for the purchase.
If for some reason you want to return the vehicle before your reservation date ends you will not be eligible for a refund on the days the car is not used. For more information visit: https://www.avis.com/en/customer-service/faqs/usa/reservations.
Avis as sent out an email to their patrons explaining the additional precautions they’re taking but have not altered their reservation or cancellation policies as of this publishing date.
- “We enhanced the techniques used to clean our vehicles after each rental. In particular, we are paying special attention to interior customer touch points such as seats, steering wheels, door handles and other hard surfaces.
- We are also cleaning our facilities frequently with recommended sanitizing products.
- In addition, we are taking steps to ensure the welfare of our employees. This includes instructing employees who feel ill to stay home and consult their healthcare providers. We are also urging all employees to be vigilant about frequent hand washing.”
Budget Rent a Car Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 48 Hour Fee: $0
Prepaid After 48 Hours Fee: $75 Processing Fee
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: $150 Processing Fee
Budget’s policy is slightly different than the previous car rental companies as they have a longer period in which you can avoid steep fees. You may cancel up to 48 hours in advance of your designated pick-up time without penalty. However, if you cancel after that time window has passed you will be charged a $75 fee.
If you wait to cancel after the 24 hour time frame is over you will be subject to a $150 processing fee. You can still request a refund, but the refund will only be applied to your account if the total charge was greater than the $150 processing fee. If you simply chose to not pickup the rental you will not receive any refund. In other words, if the reservation is less than $150 it’s best to no-show rather than cancel and incur the processing fee.
Learn more about canceling your prepaid reservation different policies can apply if you are renting a high-demand car. Need to cancel? Visit their website and cancel and request a refund online.
If you cancel less than 48 hours before your pick-up time, a $75 U.S. fee will be assessed.
Dollar Car Rental Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 48 Hours Fee: $100 Processing Fee
If a prepaid reservation is cancelled more than 24 hours before the pickup time, a $50 cancellation fee will be assessed. If the prepaid reservation is cancelled within 24 hours before the pickup time, a $100 fee will be assessed.
Again, this companies policy for no-shows indicates that you forfeit the entire prepaid amount but do not incur additional fees. More information is available on the PDF.
Dollar did release this statement in regards to their policies around car cleaning but have not made changes to their cancelation policy as of yet:
“Please also know that we continue to maintain our high standards for safety and cleanliness. In addition to practicing preventative measures to reduce the spread of germs within our facilities, all of our vehicles go through a rigorous, multi-step cleaning process for each rental. We remain vigilant in upholding these practices and will take additional precautions as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO) and local governments.”
Enterprise Rent-A-Car Cancellation Policy
Enterprise Rent-A-Car Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: $100 Processing Fee
As with all of the previous rental car policies if you did not pay or add your credit/debit card information at the time of checkout then you will not be subject to cancellation.
“If you cancel your booking more than 1 day (24 Hours) before your specified pick-up time, you will receive a full refund minus a cancellation fee of USD $50 / CAD $65.
If you cancel your booking less than 1 day (24 Hours) before your specified pick-up time, you will receive a full refund minus a cancellation fee of USD $100 / CAD $135.”
You can view, modify, or cancel your reservation by clicking here.
E-Z Rent-A-Car Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: Entire Amount of Rental
If a prepaid reservation is cancelled more than 24 hours before the pickup time, a $50 cancellation fee will be assessed. If you do not cancel a prepaid reservation within 24 hours of the scheduled pick-up time or if the rental vehicle is not picked up by the close of business on the arrival date listed on the confirmation email, the entire amount will be forfeited.
Hertz Rent A Car Cancellation Policy
Prepaid 24 Hour Fee: $50
Prepaid After 24 Hours Fee: $100
If you cancel your Pay Later Hertz booking before 24 hours after your booking and your pick-up time has not occurred yet, then you can cancel the booking for no penalty.
However, if you cancel your Hertz booking 24 hours prior to pickup you will incur a $50 cancellation fee. If it’s canceled within 24 hours before the pickup time then you will be subject to a $100 fee. If you don’t cancel the booking at all your forfeit the total amount of the rental.
Easirent UK/USA Policy and Procedure Updates
Easirent is continuing with business as usual with a few modifications and all customers will be served and all reservations honored.
Here are some updates from Easirent operation:
All locations will remain open with reduced hours as set out below.
All branches will be operated when possible with a self service kiosk and drop boxes.
There is a large fleet available
All Valet personnel have been instructed to make thorough cleaning of vehicles and to use anti bacterial wipes on door handles gear stick and steering wheel
Location opening hours:
All airport locations 8am to 6pm
EDC and GLC – same as now, but closed on Sundays.
